Haywire
by Squirrel holding a bazooka
Summary: Danny has made a choice, and nothing will change his mind. He is going to get rid of his ghost half forever. But turning on the portal while inside it again is proving to have some complications, namely the development of powers continuing, even though he no longer has a ghost form.
1. Chapter 1: Begin Again

I don't own Danny Phantom. This takes place after The Ultimate Enemy.

* * *

Chapter One: Begin Again

Luck. It was sheer dumb luck that saved everyone Danny cared about and Mr. Lancer. Meeting Clockwork was by complete chance. If SkulkTech had let go and Sam and Tucker didn't try to release Danny, they never would have come across the ghost of time. Thinking about this, Danny looked from Clockwork to his family. The halfa's face was turned down, his mouth frowning and his eyes cold, seeming even more ghost-like than Dan had.

"Thank you," Danny said quietly, his voice barely above a whisper. "You knew this was going to happen- all of it. Even this part."

The Observants see the parade as it passes by, one by one, all in a set line," Clockwork explained. "I see the parade from above, all the twists and turns it may, or may_ not_, take." A blue portal appeared next to them, and Clockwork took Danny through time, back to the starting point of the CAT. The ancient ghost handed Danny a packet, everything around them remaining in stasis. Without even having to wait for Danny's question, he made an offer to the halfa.

"You've given everyone _else_ in your life a second chance... why not you?"

Danny turned to face the front as Clockwork disappeared and time resumed. Danny's mouth hung open slightly in shock, his eyes refusing to blink.

"Mr. Fenton?" Mr. Lancer asked harshly, his eyes scolding. "Is there anything you would like to_ share_ with the class?"

Danny's mouth closed as he pursed his lips, staring down at the test answers in his hand. A single intake of breath signaled Danny's decision, and the boy walked up to Lancer's desk. The teacher's face immediately softened, and he accepted the answers from Danny. "You can take a make-up test on Saturday morning," he told the ghost boy. He jutted his head out to the side at the door, where Danny saw his sister quickly disappearing.

Danny walked out of the room to see Jazz walking down the hallway as though nothing had happened. He caught up with the redhead in an instant, locking his arm with hers as they walked out to the front steps. "Thanks, Jazz," he said, holding up the note.

"What?" Jazz asked innocently.

"Oh, come on," Danny egged her on. "The _Boo_merang, _your_ headband, _your_ handwriting?"

"That's not my handwriting, and I'm sure there are _tons_ of blue headbands," his sister shrugged off the accusation.

Danny let out a breath of a laugh and rolled his eyes. "How long have you known?"

She smiled sheepishly, giving in to his questioning. "Since the whole Spectra thing; I saw you transform in an alley. Tell me, though, how did you defeat that creep?"

"I... got back a little earlier than Dan expected," Danny lied. There was no way he would tell anyone what had really happened. Not now, not ever.

A giant, green slime ghost chasing a police car down the street caught both teens' attention. "Go," she told him, and Danny only smiled, transforming before flying off to fight evil.

"Guess who's back and than ever?" he called before diving into the fight.

* * *

He wasn't better than ever.

Three weeks after the incident, as it was now being called by Team Phantom, and Danny was still an emotionless drone, occasionally slipping into his own little world and refusing to respond until someone literally slapped him out of it.

At the moment, Danny was sitting on the floor of his parents' lab, staring out the only window in the dank, dark basement. The light of the ghost portal was no longer there, his parents working on a simple repair for it. The rest of Team Phantom was there as well, trying to talk to Danny while his parents went up to the Ops Center to retrieve the ectoplasm samples.

"Danny, please, talk to us," Sam begged, shaking his shoulders. "What happened while you were in the Ghost Zone?"

Slowly, Danny turned his head up to look at Sam. "I'm a demon," he stated darkly before turning his attention to the portal. "I bet that could get rid of my powers. I've done all the equations, and it would work. I would be human again."

Danny got to his feet, and his friends' and sister's eyes widened. "Danny, are you insane?" Jazz demanded.

"Don't do this, dude!" Tucker agreed. "Phantom is a part of who you are."

Sam tried to run forward, only to run into a shield Danny put up that separated the room into two halves, Danny being on the side with the ghost portal. His friends and sister began hitting on the shield, trying desperately to get through, but to no avail, only able to see Danny through the green-colored screen. Their calls of panic and terror brought the elder Fentons downstairs as Danny stepped into the portal.

Danny immediately brought down the shield as his parents came in, slamming his hand to the "on" button. To his parents, it looked like their son had just lost his marbles and stepped into the ghost portal.

Electricity bolted its way through Danny, and he let out a scream, arching his back in pain while his parents ran to the control panel, trying to turn the portal off. "Jack, where's the off switch?" Maddie demanded, searching the panel.

"The button is _inside_ the portal," Jazz explained, turning to face the device as it began to swirl green.

Danny stepped out of it, his black hair now marred with white streaks. He leaned heavily on the portal, his clothes torn from the volts of electricity that slashed through his clothes and body. His eyes opened and he looked up, causing his family and friends to gasp. While one eye looked perfectly normal, its usual sky blue, the right was bright green, almost neon.

"Danny!" Sam called, being the first to run up to him and the one to catch him as his body gave out and he fell forward. She checked his pulse a moment after his eyes closed. "He's not breathing!" she called, laying him down on the ground and beginning CPR.

* * *

Danny woke up to a strong, steady beeping sound. His eyes opened, and he turned his head from his left to the right to see a heart rate monitor.

"You're awake," an amazed voice breathed, and Danny turned his head back to the left to see Jazz standing in doorway, light in her eyes. She ran up to her little brother and hugged him around the neck.

Danny let out a choking sound, and he could hear his vitals fluctuate slightly in the background. "Jazz... can't... breathe," he choked out.

"Sorry!" Jazz exclaimed, pulling away. She ran back to the doorway and called down the hall, "He's awake!"

Soon, Danny was once again without oxygen, but this time, he simply sat there, being hugged by his parents. As they pulled away, he asked, "What happened?"

The other three Fentons shared a wary look before Maddie explained. "You went into the portal and turned it on, Danny. Your heart stopped, but we got it started again with CPR. You've been in a coma for a month."

Danny thought. It had taken one month for him to realize his so-called destiny after the first portal incident, and it had taken one month for him to wake up after having it stripped away... or so he hoped. "Can I... can I have a moment to myself?" he requested.

"Sure, Danny," Jack nodded. "If you need anything, just give us a holler!" He seemed to be fairly chipper at the moment, happy to have his son awake.

The second the door was closed, Danny took in a deep breath, throwing his hands up in the air and calling out, "Going ghost!" He looked down at himself to see that his hospital gown was still on his body instead of his usual jumpsuit that came when he said the phrase. "I'm going ghost!" he repeated before pulling his hand back down near his body. There was no ghostly glow, no gloves, no... anything.

Danny grinned, letting out a small laugh. "I'm human," he breathed. "I'm finally human."

* * *

Clockwork frowned as he looked at the boy sitting in the hospital bed trying to transform into his ghost half. He was expecting his daily reminder from the Observants in three... two... one.

"The boy is your responsibility now," one of them declared.

Clockwork turned around to face them, a scowl on his face now. "Yes, yes, I know," he said, not that his declaration would stop them.

"As is his evil self," the second Observant said.

"His new form now stronger than ever before."

"If he is not monitored, his powers will spin out of control."

"While his former form had ectoplasm mixed with his DNA..."

"...he is now the first and only true half ghost in existence."

Clockwork almost rolled his eyes at the back and forth from the two Observants. "So I've heard," he droned. "I will watch over the boy and his older self, as I agreed to two months ago."

"If you fail to properly raise this boy and his powers, the implications will be dire!" the first Observant claimed.

"And you think I don't know this?" Clockwork replied with a sigh. "It is ridiculous that you come here every day to tell me this. I know what must be done to insure this and the other worlds' protection."

"And if you fail?"

"I won't."

* * *

Whew. And there goes chapter one. I'll be explaining why exactly neither Danny nor Vlad were actually half-ghosts in a few chapters, though Danny is now. This is going to grow dark at some points as it goes on, as I plan for Danny's enemies to develop a bit more, as will he. Don't count on him winning every battle and don't count on Danny's simpler enemies showing up every five minutes. I also plan on having a few more human bad guys crop up, something Danny is fairly unprepared for, aside from Freakshow. Thanks for taking the time to read all this.

Squirrel


	2. Chapter 2: State of Mind

Realized: In Infinite Realms, despite the fact that Vlad was brought to a place of power in the realms he traveled to, he was stopped by Danny each time. Vlad's destiny is not to rule, but to be defeated by Danny.

Fluehatraya: Haha, thanks. I hope the little you in your head is happy with this.

KaiMiiru: Unfortunately, I didn't get the full explanation in this chapter, but it will come in the next chapter or two.

CrazyCoffeeKat: Thanks. I was hoping it would be a new idea.

Turkeyhead987: Thank you, and here you go!

Bobby: I assure you, I'm working on it, but if you have any questions or comments about another story, please review in that story. All reviews to all my stories wind up in my inbox.

* * *

Chapter Two: State of Mind

Danny could not have been happier to be shivering in the cold air of December. He had slept through the latter half of November and the first half of December, meaning Christmas- and the fight- was almost upon him. Not having his powers was an added plus, even if he now had to wear a jacket to stay warm from the chilly wind.

Sam and Tucker were looking at him warily every five seconds, waiting to see if he would randomly jump into action and put on a light show using his powers in the spirit of Christmas, but it never came. Instead, they were left with empty thoughts and prayers for actions.

Danny sighed and looked between the two. "I might not have my powers anymore, but I've been fighting ghosts for over a year," Danny declared. "In that time, I've learned to realize when I'm being watched."

"Sorry," his friends chorused, trying to focus on something else other than their formerly ghostly friend.

Sam turned to smiling at people, offering waves and well wishes. "Happy Hanukkah, merry Christmas, happy Kwanzaa!" she called, earning her many confused and worried looks. In a small town, everyone knew of anyone that stood out, and Sam was definitely one of them. The fact that the mall was a favorite crawling space of Casper High's students didn't exactly help her case, either.

"What's got you so chipper?" Danny grumbled, already knowing the answer.

"Hey, every other day, I pretty much hate the world and most of those on it, but around the holiday season, I'm the Goth bird of happiness," Sam reasoned, giving another smile and salutation to some random strangers.

"Come on, dude, can't you be happy about the holidays for once?" Tucker asked. "You pretty much got what you wanted for Christmas."

Danny sighed and shook his head, thinking of the great feud that went down every year between his parents. While his father believed Santa Claus was real, his mother, the scientist that she was, adamantly declared that Santa didn't exist. Things never went well whenever they started arguing about it, from a reindeer peeing on Danny's face as a child to the turkey randomly coming to life when he was seven due to some ectoplasm being spilled on it. He just wondered what catastrophe would go down this year.

"Santa Claus is a ho-ho-hoax!" Maddie declared, holding up a megaphone and a sign that has 'Santa' written on it and X-ed out.

"Don't listen to her, kids! Santa's real!" Jack called back, holding the same items as his wife. He didn't seem to realize that the name 'Santa' was X-ed out on his sign as well. Between the bickering couple was a man in a Santa suit who probably should have been getting paid more to go through what he was dealing with.

Danny only sighed, feeling frustrated by his parents as he quickly walked away from the scene and out of the mall. More so, his ghost half had practically become his voice of reason and patience, and he was having a hard time without it... not that he'd tell anyone that.

He bid his friends a quick farewell before walking into the basement, towards the portal. He walked through it without a second thought, a bag of Christmas stuff he had bought in his hand. Wandering around to a random place, he pulled out the ecto-gun his parents insisted he carry. Sure, it was meant for ghosts, but it could blast away a few knickknacks as well.

He tossed the toys and tinsel up in the air, shooting them down one by one. Just as he fired off a shot, a teddy bear moved from its place, resulting in the ray hitting the item behind it: a book a librarian-like ghost was holding up to see. As the ghost stared around at his ruined work, Danny paled considerably.

"Dude, I am _so_ sorry," Danny excused himself.

"That was my only copy!" the ghost yelled, pointing at Danny.

Danny shrugged, putting his hands up defensively. As he did, the book's cover floated down into his hands. "_The Fright Before Christmas_?" he read, his apologetic tone turning happy. "I destroyed a Christmas story? Awesome!"

"Excuse me?" the ghost demanded, his eyes turning dark as he glared at Danny.

Danny only shrugged, this time without emotion added in. "Sorry, uh..." He looked to the cover to see the ghost's name. "Ghost Writer, but I'll take the destruction of anything Christmas-y, no matter the form." He lazily tossed the cover back to the Ghost Writer before floating away, as humans could do in the Ghost Zone.

The Ghost Writer pursed his lips and took in a deep breath through his nose, letting it out slowly and counting to ten. He had been hired to do a job, and his employee said he would know when to do it. He couldn't put his own vengeful spin on it, just make it look like he did. "How dare you ruin the spirit of Christmas?" the Ghost Writer demanded with overdramatic flair, proving just how bad of an actor he really was.

Still, it made the halfa turn around quickly in surprise.

"You have ruined my book, so now, you'll just have to help me write a new one."

Danny sighed and confessed, "Look, dude, I'm sorry I ruined your book, but I already have to write an English paper over the break that's going to kill my slowly-going-to-recover GPA if I don't work on it every day until school starts up again."

Before Danny knew it, he was back in the mall. Warily, he shrugged. He had seen ghosts with teleportation powers before. Maybe the Ghost Writer just sent him back.

_Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the mall, every creature was cheery- well, not them all._

Danny looked up suddenly, his eyes filled with shock. "Did you hear that?"_ Danny asked, his voice all confused._

Tucker frowned. "Man, don't start with this silly ghost ruse."

"You gave up your powers, we know how it goes," Sam sighed. _Yet the Goth girl's mind was all filled with 'no's._

"What?" _Danny cried, his mind all aflutter... So I guess I'll come up with one problem or another!_

As the Ghost Writer said those words, Danny's eyebrows furrowed. He struggled to understand the Ghost Writer's words, and instantly, the model reindeer in the mall came to life- or, death rather. They started glowing a sickly green, parts of them rotting off like zombies. They flew off, taking the fake Santa with them.

_Danny's eyes grew wide, with horror and fear, seeing what I'd done with the deer. He looked around quick, with no time to lose. And then the boy said, _"I know what to do!"

_Fast Danny ran to grab some Christmas lights, making a lasso like Young Blood in a fight. He threw it far and with perfection, not once did he suffer from misdirection. The loop hooked around the reindeer ghost's throat, and Danny pulled it down into the toy boats._

Just as the Ghost Writer had said, the reindeer and sleigh were pulled down into the mall's pond, where a collection of model boats were floating. The mall Santa ran screaming out of the sleigh, and the man who had obviously spent hours working on the now-ruined boats glared at Danny.

"Sorry," _Danny said, sheepish in manner. Unfortunately for him, I'm a better planner. The reindeer took off, dragging Danny along, while Jack and Maddie gave their battle cry song. But it was no use, the boy was gone, and now my plot is really moving on!_

"You want something from me? Well you're not gonna get it!" _But before Danny let go, he was forced to sit, in the sleigh's cabin, unable to move. Now I'm really getting into the writing groove!_

_Danny struggled and fought, but with no avail. The lights tied around him so tight until he turned pale! Losing consciousness, the boy demanded,_ "What is all this, and why have you planned it?"

* * *

_Danny woke up, none the wiser, in his old ally's tower to all that conspired._

The halfa let out a moan, putting his hand on his head. His breathing was weak from being choked by the Christmas lights.

"Good evening," _Clockwork said, making Danny snap awake._ "I understand that Christmas makes you ache."

"It's that stupid Ghost Writer, I blew up his book. Now I'm faced with rhymes everywhere I look!"

_But Clockwork only smiled, seeing my ways._ "Your hatred and malice has ruined your day. When you see the truth, the story will end." _Your ghostly mentor is right, my dear friend._

"I'm no longer a ghost," _Danny spat in despair._ "But of course my nightmare wouldn't end there. Why don't you people leave me alone? I just want to be happy with my family and home!"

"Your plans to remove your powers failed."

_And for the second time, Danny severely paled._

"What?" _Danny whispered, his mind going numb. He even found himself going dumb._

"Your powers are not an on and off switch."

"You're kidding, right? This has to be a glitch!"

"Your powers are now linked to your human form... If you want to know more, there's a ghost school with open dorms," Clockwork offered.

"Why do this to me?" _Danny asked in a huff._ "Did you really think that it wouldn't get tough?" _Horror-struck, Danny asked,_ "All the rules, all this time? They're nothing to me- and I can't stop speaking in rhyme!"

_Clockwork nodded, _"I've done all I can do. You write your own destiny, you know that is true."

"So what am I? A freak or a drone? Next thing you know, I'll be just a clone of my former self that nobody knows! This half-ghost thing sucks! I mean, it really blows. I just want to be human, is that too much to ask?" _Danny asked, letting go of his former plain mask._

"Would you shut up?" _Danny yelled to the sky. Erm… this is your story now, I've gotta fly!_

"So?" _I demanded, my story turning grim. It appeared that my nightmare never would end._

"I'm sorry, Daniel, for how events have turned, but this story won't end until your lesson is learned."

_And so I flew home, nothing better to do, pondering the life I was learning to rue. Despite the cold that snipped and snared, I didn't shiver, no I didn't dare. My parents exclaimed and put up a fuss, happy I'd gotten out of the reindeer rush._

"It was nothing," _I said, lying ease. _"Once they knew I was a Fenton, they set me free." _Strange though it was, my parents' fighting had stopped, too busy worrying for me, whether I survived or not. That was one lesson learned, I suddenly decided, holidays were for family, no matter how divided._

_As the days went on and school came, I found myself still suffering from this strange rhyme in my head and everyone's words. I just couldn't find the next lesson to learn._

"Danny, what's wrong?" _Sam asked, her Gothic glimmer gone. She was the toughest this change had been on. If only she knew it wasn't the truth, and my life was wasting away on a ghostly youth._

"I'm fine," _I lied, walking to class. How did I explain without sounding like an ass? I was the only one who wanted away with my powers, they got their wish, and now I spent hours, a day retraining myself to control all I had earned and all I had sold._

_In third period, I felt the cold, a feeling that was more than a little old. Yet I saw no breath, no ghostly sense, the fact that secretly made me wince. _"Can I go to the bathroom?" _I asked Lancer then._

_He sighed and said, _"Don't do it again."

_I rushed to the boy's room, hoping my friends couldn't tell that I had a ghostly foe to quell. I flew to Amity Elementary's school park, wondering how I detected the ghost from so far. It was wreaking havoc on the playground, and the teachers hadn't gotten the students all in, I noticed with a frown. I likely looked odd, flying around, in my black jeans and hoodie while I touched the ground._

_My hood was up, hiding my face, as I rushed for the children, finding myself in a race. I scooped some aside and back inside. If that ghost hurt any others, I would have his hide!_

_I rushed in between the unnamed ghost and child, just as the menace seemed to go wild. I put up a shield and pushed it back, fending off the monster's attack._

"Get back kid," _I warned the girl, her hair tied up in precious little curls. But she paid me no heed, which was not very wise, she didn't even try to rise. She just watched on, in shock and in awe, and I felt my angry heart thaw. Fighting the ghost was simple enough, but the little girl wouldn't have been able to put up with the stuff. She would have been gone, it'd be all my fault. Maybe it was my job to stop these assaults. I'd realized that once, but seemed to forget, instead I had filled with remorse and regret. But sometimes life will throw you a hard ball. That's when you remember to stand up and stand tall._

Danny picked up the girl and flew her inside as well, double checking to make sure no one else was on the playground. He flew forward, knocking the ghost off its feet with ease. Before it could do anything else, Danny whipped out the Fenton Thermos, sucking the ghost inside.

The boy panted heavily, still recovering from nearly two months of not fighting ghosts before he flew up, back towards Casper High.

* * *

Why did Butch Hartman have to use a comic relief episode right after TUE? I wanted to stay somewhat in continuity for just a little while before things started venturing off more and more, but writing all these rhymes was not easy. I tried to do it a little bit like the Buffy episode "Once More with Feeling" and they all wound up trapped in the musical. It started out fairly lighthearted and turned into one of the darkest episodes in the show. This wasn't nearly as dark as I intended to make, but you definitely got Danny's angst factor in there.

Thanks for reading!  
Squirrel


	3. Chapter 3: Family Ties

Realized #1: While Vlad plays chess, especially in his own little mind games with Danny, Jack and Maddie have been seen playing checkers. Therefore, Jack and Maddie are playing the children's version of Vlad's mind games, having no idea what is really going on.

Realized #2: By the end of the series, in Vlad's mind games, Danielle has made herself a queen. Though originally a pawn, pawns can become queens in chess by making it all the way across the board and back. Danielle originally worked for Vlad (black), but made it across the board to help Danny (white). Then, while searching for Danny's help in D-Stabilized, Dani joined Valerie, who at the time was working for Vlad, a black piece. So however unwittingly, Dani successfully made her way across the board and back, making herself a queen.

Realized #3: One of the plots that were abandoned when DP got shut down was probably the bloodstream nanobots. They're still in Jazz's system after Secret Weapons, so if Vlad could calibrate another controller to the bots, Jazz and Danny would be up the creek without a paddle.

Fluehatraya: Wow, you just love it when I torture Danny, don't you?

Jay: Thank you for your feedback. I'll admit that chapter and the one before it were rather rushed, and I'm trying to include more detail in this and future chapters. Sam will also be coming into play more soon. I just really wanted to get those two chapters underway. I think it goes without saying that she's going to be giving Danny more than an earful when she finds out he still has powers.

KaiiMiiru: Lol, thanks. Loved your rhymes... and do people really love it when I torture Danny that much?

CrazyCoffeeKat: Thank you!

* * *

Chapter Three: Family Ties (EDITED)

It had taken Danny nearly a day to realize he wasn't talking in rhyme anymore or narrating everything he did, but when the realization came around, he headed over to Clockwork's Tower, a large, blue-gray building with gears and clocks spouting out of it.

"Hello, Daniel," Clockwork said, somehow winding up behind Danny in the main entrance of the building.

The halfa spun around, his face twisted into a frown as he glared at the blue ghost. "Why do this to me?" Danny demanded. "All I wanted was to be human, and now I'm... I'm... I don't know what I am!" He wove his hands through his hair in frustration, not knowing what to think.

"Before, your DNA was simply coated in ectoplasm at some points," Clockwork explained, calm as ever. "Now, you are truly half ghost, half human, the only one in existence. The second shock in the portal made the infusion complete, as well as permanent."

Danny hesitated. "If I'm officially a half ghost, then why can't I turn into Phantom anymore?" he asked slowly.

A dinging sound interrupted them. "That would be your after-school snack," Clockwork declared with that half-grin he called a smile, walking off towards the kitchen. Danny reluctantly followed, seeing that the kitchen was fairly similar to the lobby of the tower. The floor was made up of blue tile, the walls and appliances purple.

Clockwork opened the over and pulled out a tray of cookies without even bothering to put on an oven mitt. He set them down on the granite island, gesturing for Danny to take one. "They're hot," he warned the halfa, but of course, the teenage boy paid him no heed.

"Ow!" Danny exclaimed, dropping the cookie back on the tray.

"I warned you," Clockwork chuckled. "They're chocolate chip with a hint of ectoberry."

Danny's mouth dropped open, the half-eaten bite of cookie clearly visible in his mouth. "Ectoberry?" he asked warily, eyeing the cookies. There were, in fact, tiny pieces of something that glowed green in them, something that had missed Danny's attention before.

Clockwork chuckled at the worried halfa and shook his head. "No need to worry; it will enhance your powers and control."

"I've tried ghost food before, though, and it always tasted horrible," Danny winced, scrunching up his nose. "Not to mention it made me sick for a week."

"That's because you weren't meant to eat it at that time," Clockwork explained. "At that point, you were still completely human, just with some ghostly abilities. Now you truly are a "halfa" as other ghosts call you."

"Great, now I'm even more of a freak than I was before," Danny grumbled. Worse yet, he was his own undoing. Had he not walked into the portal again, there may have been some way to reverse the process.

Clockwork sighed, taking a cookie and eating it before declaring, "Daniel, your powers are there for a reason- and seeing as we're not speaking in rhyme, you know what that is."

Danny pursed his lips and let out a breath through his nose. "Why can't I turn into Phantom anymore?" he finally asked, accepting the truth. He was human, and a stupid choice had blown that away... even if it might turn out to be a good choice.

"Before, you were in need of a form to maintain the powers and the ectoplasm in your system," Clockwork explained. "Your body as a human was unable to do that. After the second portal shock, your body adapted to be half ghost, eliminating the need for an alternate form. Obviously, your appearance has changed accordingly."

Danny nodded, staring at his hand with his eyes, noting that it looked paler than it had as Phantom or even as he had before the incident. One of his eyes had turned neon green, and his hair was streaked white, both attributed to Phantom. Since the incident, he had worn the same type of outfit: black jeans, shirt, shoes, and hoodie. They were able to hide his abnormalities, especially his black-and-white hair. "What about my ghost sense?" he suddenly asked. "I know when a ghost is near- even far viewing what happened yesterday- but I don't see my breath anymore?"

"Ghosts don't sense other ghosts the way you did, Daniel," Clockwork explained. "As a human, ghosts were foreign. Now, you simply sense others in the area, their genetic signature, to be precise. It is an ability that most ghosts have, designed so they may protect their lair. As your powers develop, your scope will increase."

"So... how do I keep people from knowing who I am?" Danny asked, changing the topic once again. "If I just show up, people will figure it out. After all, not a lot of kids have black-and-white hair in Amity Park."

Using magic or powers of some sort, Clockwork put all of the cookies into a basket, handing it to Danny. "Go home, Daniel. You'll need your rest for your body to adapt to the changes it is facing," he said. "And only eat three of those a day. Come back when you run out so you may get more ectoberry-rich foods."

Danny sighed, accepting the basket. "Thanks, Clockwork," Danny smiled, heading back home as fast as he could fly in his strange, new form. He touched down in the lab, eating the half-eaten cookie he had previously dropped. "Mom! Dad! I'm home!" Danny called once he made it up the stairs, as though he had walked in through the back door instead of the basement.

He continued walking through the house, calling for his parents in confusion. For a second, he thought they were out hunting a ghost until he heard the television on in the den. He walked into the room to see his parents and sister all sitting on the sofa, staring at the TV in shock. They were even all posed the same way, like the Thinker with one elbow on their knee and their chin on their hand. Danny walked further in the room and turned around so he could see what they saw.

On the television was a cell phone video from the previous day, displaying a teenage boy with black and white hair touching down and pulling a group of children out of the way of the attacking ghost. The little color from Danny's face drained as video-Danny approached the school to drop off the children. As he turned around to face the ghost again, the camera got a blurry figure, just barely saving Danny's identity. How had he missed that? Had he been so focused that it missed his attention?

"Oh, thank god," he muttered under his breath. He was safe for now.

Jack remained tight-lipped, a disapproving glare being sent to the video-Danny. "Looks like there's another ghost kid in town," he sneered. "And just when we thought we got rid of Inviso-Bill."

Danny glanced to his father, a frown on his face as well. "Maybe this one is good," he offered. "He hasn't done anything bad yet. Some ghosts just want to be left alone."

Jazz looked at her brother before standing and walking past him, her shoulder roughly brushing his. Instantly, Danny whipped around and followed his sister into the kitchen. "What the heck is wrong with you?" Danny demanded.

"That could have been you saving those kids, but no," Jazz hissed. "You were a hero, and now you're just..."

The redhead rolled her eyes and walked away from Danny, who had about the same sentiment and ran up to his room in a huff.

A few hours after Danny got to his room, his cell phone began to ring, playing "The Imperial March" of all things. "What do you want, Vlad?" he growled. He wasn't exactly in the news.

A dark chuckle was heard from the other side of the line. "Oh, I was just watching you on the news," he stated.

"Can it, Plasmius," Danny snapped, keeping his voice low, lest his parents hear him. "What do you really want?"

"Oh, I just thought I'd let you know that your sister is here," Vlad said, Danny practically able to hear the smirk over the phone.

The color drained out of Danny's face. "What did you do to her?" Danny demanded, his voice growing in volume. "What did you do?" This time, he practically yelled it, only hearing Vlad's evil laughter in response.

A dial tone was all that Danny heard next. He pulled the iPhone away from his ear, staring at the screen in shock. _Call with Froot Loop ended,_ the screen read before going dark. At that point, Danny was past the point of caring. He was going to get his sister back. In an instant, Danny shot up into the sky.

* * *

When Danny touched down at Vlad's mansion, he saw the Specter Speeder sitting in the driveway. That could have meant a number of things, but it most likely meant that Jazz had gone there of her own free will. If she had gone there of her own free will, did that mean that she was staying there of her own free will? After all, she did have quite the reason to be mad at Danny, and anger made people do strange things.

Danny walked forward slowly, cautious of all Vlad could do...

Like electrocute Danny the second his foot touched the first step up to Vlad's mansion.

The boy woke up to feel soft, green grass underneath him- wait, no. That wasn't grass. He felt the ground, realizing it was astro turf. He looked around to see lights shining down on him and a set of stands on either side. He was in a football stadium.

Letting out a moan of pain, he turned onto his stomach to get up, only to see Jazz doing the same, and she was wearing the ecto-skeleton. "Jazz!" he exclaimed, leaping up like nothing was wrong and rushing to help his sister.

Much to Danny's surprise, the redhead ripped her armored arm away from her little brother. "Don't even, Danny," she snapped, getting to her feet on her own.

"Ah, siblings," a voice from the stands as well as the jumbotron declared with false admiration. The teens turned their attention to the screen, where they saw Vlad Masters' head. "Figures you two would turn against each other. Whoever comes out alive may go."

"Turn against each other?" Danny asked in surprise, turning to his sister. "What does that mean?"

Jazz only scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Like you don't know," she gritted out. "How could you lie to everyone about still having your powers?"

"Ah, ah, ah," Vlad tsked. "Save the fighting for when the battle begins. Jasmine, your suit is being powered by the ecto-converter and Technus's staff. You also have bloodstream nanobots running through your system controlled by me."

"So the suit won't waste me?" Jazz asked in her annoyingly perky fashion.

"No, so I can if you betray me," Vlad explained. "And Daniel, you have... well, you're still trying to understand how your powers work now, aren't you? Have fun, and begin."

The screen went fuzzy for a moment before blinking off, and Danny and Jazz turned to each other in shock. Let the battle begin.

* * *

Vladimir Masters's week had been going exceedingly well. Not only had he snuck the ecto-converter away from the Fentons- okay, Skulker snuck it away- along with Technus's staff and some bloodstream nanobots, but from what he had heard and seen on his cameras hidden around the Fenton household, young Daniel had given up his powers! What on Earth could have driven the boy to do so, he didn't know, but he knew better than to look a gift horse in the mouth.

So when the doorbell rang, Vlad saw two sides to the story: one good and one that could easily be manipulated to turn good.

"Oh, Uncle Vlad," Jasmine sobbed the second he opened the door. "I hate my life, my father's an idiot, my brother is a jerk-"

"What's that?" Vlad asked, blinking in surprise.

"I hate my life?"

"No, after that."

"My brother is a jerk?"

No! In the _middle_!"

"My father's an idiot?"

"That's the one," Vlad cheered, putting a grey-suited arm around Jazz's shoulder. "Come on in and tell Uncle Vlad what's wrong."

Jazz walked inside and told Vlad the story of what had been going on. "I- I found out Danny was Phantom," she sniffed, brushing her orange-red hair behind her ear, a job her trademark headband was failing to do. "He-he promised he would get rid of his powers, and..." She took in a deep, shaky breath. This really was hard for her.

"What?" Vlad gasped, pretending to hear all of this information for the first time. "Well, we both know what havoc your brother has wreaked in Amity Park; we must prepare you to stop him! In fact, I have a theory that Danny did not truly get rid of his powers."

Jazz's eyes widened. Had the boy on TV truly been Danny? "Do you have something to help me defeat him?" she asked, acting as innocent as possible and taking advantage of Vlad's intentions as well. "Maybe... some weapons or a battle suit?"

Vlad grinned and led Jazz towards his private study. "As a matter of fact, I do," he said, lifting the top of a bust to reveal a big, red button. A simple press caused the fireplace to split open, revealing a stairway. The two walked downstairs to Vlad's lab, a high-tech wonderland. One thing that caught Jazz's eye was the Fenton ecto-skeleton. It had gone missing after Phantom's fight with Pariah Dark. Well, that explained where it had gone.

"You see, Jasmine, I have been preparing to fight Danny Phantom myself for quite some time," Vlad explained, leading Jazz to the suit. "This suit will aid me in defeating him, but I need to be capable of running tests from the outside first. Perhaps you could be the test subject to assist me."

Jazz looked between Vlad and the suit, easily realizing what could happen should Vlad realize she was working undercover. Still, and opportunity like this only came along every so often... This was her chance.

"Absolutely," she agreed. The ladder next to it had been placed so that she could easily climb up and hop inside- perhaps Vlad had been planning to test it soon. No sooner than she sat down did the suit connect to her body, and a small pinprick in her neck was the last thing she felt before she passed out.

Jazz woke up in some sort of football stadium, her brother trying to help her up. She sneered and pulled away. Even if she was only helping Vlad to get information, Danny had lied to her face and virtually destroyed her trust. "Don't even, Danny," she snapped, rising up on her own with ease.

"Ah, siblings," a voice from the stands as well as the jumbotron declared with false admiration. The teens turned their attention to the screen, where they saw Vlad Masters' head. "Figures you two would turn against each other. Whoever comes out alive may go."

"Turn against each other?" Danny asked in surprise, turning to his sister. "What does that mean?"

Jazz only scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Like you don't know," she gritted out. "How could you lie to everyone about still having your powers?" Acting for Vlad's sake? Maybe. Angry on her own behalf? Oh, hell yes.

"Ah, ah, ah," Vlad tsked. "Save the fighting for when the battle begins. Jasmine, your suit is being powered by the ecto-converter and Technus's staff. You also have bloodstream nanobots running through your system controlled by me."

"So the suit won't waste me?" Jazz asked, half checking and half hopefully. She had seen what Vlad did at the reunion and was a bit wary thinking about what he could do now.

"No, so I can if you betray me," Vlad explained with humor in his voice, like this was all just some game to him. "And Daniel, you have... well, you're still trying to understand how your powers work now, aren't you? Have fun, and begin."

The screen went fuzzy for a moment before blinking off, and Danny and Jazz turned to each other in shock.

Instantly, Danny picked up Jazz in the suit and began flying up- albeit a bit shakily. He would have easily escaped Vlad with his sister had it not been for the shield that electrocuted him and knocked both of them down, yelling and screaming all the way.

"Oh, by the way, that shield stops both ghosts _and_ humans," Vlad's voice came through the speakers.

"Okay, Jazz, we're going to have to fake this fight, so follow my le-" Danny didn't get to finish his sentence before Jazz punched him clear across the field, straight into the wall of the shield.

Danny let out a scream as the electric current flowed through him before he was released, falling to the ground. Angrily, Danny shot back up, flying towards Jazz. He was about to call her out, asking what she was doing, but she spoke first.

"You're toast," she declared, no remorse in her voice.

Anger flooded through Danny. "Oh yeah?" he asked. "You and what toaster?"

While Danny found himself unable to attack his sister, Jazz had no trouble in fighting him. She hit him down repeatedly, Danny growing more and more exasperated with each punch. Finally, he grabbed Jazz, turning her intangible and trapping her partially underground. "WOULD YOU LISTEN TO ME?" Danny demanded, glaring Jazz down with his multicolored eyes.

"Duh, I am listening to you," Jazz said quietly, giving him a wink.

Danny pulled back slightly in surprise, giving Jazz her opportunity to free one of her arms and toss Danny into the sky, causing him to hit the shield above them. When Danny fell back down again, he moaned, his eyes shutting.

Jazz let out an over dramatic gasp, kneeling down to Danny. He opened his left, blue eye for a moment, confirming that he was alright. "Oh no! What have I done?" Jazz asked, scooping one suited hand under Danny's chest to lift him up slightly.

Vlad smirked and took down the shield in order to go out on the field and congratulate Jazz. "Well done, Jasmi-" Vlad cut himself off when Danny slipped intangibly through Jazz's arms, disappearing underground. "Why you little- well, you're forgetting that I have-"

Before he could finish his proclamation, Danny flew up, stealing Vlad's remote controlling the nanobots in Jazz's blood. "Nothing," Danny declared, crushing the device in his hand. "And don't you_ ever_ even _think_ about so much as touching my sister again."

Danny swooped down, pulling Jazz out of the suit intangibly. He quickly flew her over to the Specter Speeder, depositing her in the passenger's seat while he himself got in the driver's seat. Maybe if he was driving, Jazz would let him focus on that instead of questioning him.

And for a while, she did. She understood the importance of getting away from Vlad as fast as possible before he got his bearings and flew after them as Plasmius. But the second they flew over Lake Winnebago, the redhead started talking.

"I'm still mad at you," she declared. "And I have the right to be."

Danny took in a deep breath and pursed his lips before confessing, "You do."

"How could you keep this from us, Danny?" Jazz questioned. "Sam, Tucker, and I are here for you. We've stood up for you, kept your secret, even when it was inconvenient or dangerous for us. We protected you, helped you, and you turned around and kept this from us."

"I know."

"Why, Danny? Why keep the fact that you were still half ghost a secret from us? Is what Vlad said about you not being able to transform true?"

Danny bit his lip. He would have to answer all of those questions eventually, it would by so much easier just to answer the simplest first. "Yes," he confessed, answering the last question only.

Danny listened silently as Jazz ranted and raved, reprimanding him for his actions. It wasn't until they drew close to home that Danny spoke up.

"Vlad is dangerous, Jazz. You shouldn't have gone up against him, especially without backup," Danny said seriously, glancing over to Jazz. They both had things to answer for, but he really just hoped to wait to explain his to all of Team Phantom at once. "What were you thinking?"

"Danny, Vlad had Ghost X steal the ecto-converter from Mom and Dad and some bloodstream nanobots from Axion Labs, and I think he stole that staff thingy, too. Not even mentioning the ecto-skeleton... You were out of commission- or so I thought- so I was just looking for a window to go see Vlad and find out what he was up to." Her voice suddenly turned low and quiet, not wanting to admit to anything as she said, "Thanks for giving me a reason to."

Danny winced at the underlying truth as they touched down in the backyard. "You can't tell anyone," Danny begged. "Not even Sam or Tucker."

"Got it."

It was dark by now, well past midnight. And with the way their parents tracked ghosts, there was absolutely no way the two were getting by their parents like nothing was going on.

"Heh-heh... hi," Danny said, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

"WHERE HAVE YOU TWO BEEN?" Maddie demanded. "Jazz, you just get up and leave, taking the Specter Speeder, and Danny, you followed her!"

"Um... we were just out... with some friends," Jazz lied. "My friend Jenna moved to Wisconsin, and Danny and I went to say hi."

Maddie looked between the two teens, daring them to continue. When they didn't, she declared, "When you two want to tell us the truth, come see us. Until then, you're grounded."

Both teens' heads fell as they let out groaned.

"Oh, and Danny," Jack added in, only to be cut off by Maddie.

"This isn't a good time, Jack."

"But we were meaning to tell him today," Jack whispered.

"The circumstances have changed."

Danny looked between his parents worriedly. "Tell me what?" he demanded. "If there's something going on, I need to know."

Slowly, the elder two Fentons shared a nervous look and confessed, "You're adopted."

* * *

So I was rereading this and hit a realization moment of where I wanted this to go. The plot has been altered, and Danny's secret will stay a secret for a while. In addition, I'm hoping to create Vlad's chessboard that he set up in Reign Storm and even beforehand. You'll start to see how the dominoes hit each other and the chapters line up instead of just being a plot-per-episode thing without much story line development. Next up, we'll get to see how people at Casper High react to a new ghost boy.


End file.
